Looks Don't Make the World Go Round
by RoseDawson35
Summary: I'm not pretty enough," she murmured, staring down at the floor. "You know," she looked up at the sound of his voice, his hands on her shoulders. "Everything has beauty...we just don't always see it at first." LxOC Based on the song Annie by Safetysuit.
1. Prologue

**Prologue: She Never Looked in the Mirror…**

_She never liked what she would see._

**AN: Yes, I've started another fanfiction...don't worry, I'm still working on my Kingdom Hearts one. This is really short, but the other chapters will be longer, and the story itself won't be very long. So enjoy and review please. :)**

_There was a girl named Annie…she had a very pretty face, but not in the way you would think so._

Annie hated looking in the mirror. She could always find something wrong with her face, and the longer she looked, the more ugly she felt. It was always the same mental list; _My nose is too pointy, I'm too pale, my eyes are too dull…_the list could go on and on. Though she knew the mirror never lied, sometimes she didn't want to believe that the person on the other side of it was really herself. But sure enough, when she placed her hand to the mirror, the reflection did the same, and when she stared expressionlessly, so did the girl with the plain, brown, shoulder length hair and dull brown eyes. But somehow, she'd manage to get through the day by hiding the scars on her arms and her insecurities with herself behind a fake smile and some make up.

And as much as Annie despised looking at her plain-jane self, she couldn't tear her eyes away from the mirror.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**AN: I honestly meant to update sooner than this, but anyway here it is. I'll try to update as often as possible, I have writer's block on my other story. Also, I wasn't exactly sure where the college was located, so if I'm wrong, please feel free to correct me. And I've decided:  
**

**bold + **_italics _= _**song lyrics**_

_italics = thoughts_

**Enjoy! :)**

Annie brushed through her hair, taking a long, what she hoped was the last look at herself.

_Decent enough, I suppose, _she thought, her eyes now made up with some eyeliner and mascara. She practiced smiling a few times, the first ones looking a tad too forced. After all, it had to look somewhat realistic. Now, it wasn't that she was a dreary or depressed person, it was just that there were some things that others didn't need to know, and her pain was one of them. With one final glance back, she shrugged on her black jacket and stepped out into the brisk February air, beginning to walk towards her car.

She had left her home in America in the fall to study abroad in Japan and rented a small apartment near To-Oh University where she attended college. It was great and everything—Japan was beautiful, but she was so…**lonely. ** And being left in solitude most of the time only gave her more opportunities to think about some of the things that had hurt her the most.

On the way to school though, Annie could drown out these thoughts with music. It was almost like an anti-drug for her, but when she reached her parking spot, it was gone, and her mind became focused on what was important at the time. That was how she kept herself together until she could let herself fall apart and no one else had to know.

Annie had decided that when she moved to Tokyo, her past gave her absolutely no reason to be rude or bitter to anyone. So when her group of friends would greet her with a smile in the morning, she smiled back for real most of the time.

Then, the day would progress normally, and she would go to her classes as usual. She worked hard, made good grades, and didn't like to draw attention to herself. If you asked someone if they knew who Annie Carter was, they would most likely smile and reply, "Yeah, she sweet, but she's really quiet," and they would have nothing more to add and walk away. That was perfectly fine with her though, she preferred it that way.

On this particular day, everything was routine, except for one small incident that she had no idea was going to affect her so much.

_All right, _she thought, walking quickly to her next class, _Just one more and I can go home and—_her thoughts were put on hold however, when she unexpectedly ran into something, or rather someone, causing her books to fall to the floor.

"I'm very sorry, I should pay more attention as to where I'm going," she heard a male voice say.

"Oh no, don't apologize, I should watch where _I'm_ going, " she laughed slightly and knelt down to pick up her books. She looked up at the boy she crashed into and was a bit taken aback by his peculiar, disheveled appearance.

His skin was much paler than hers, which she had deemed impossible long ago, and his wild black hair that was practically flying in every direction contrasted greatly with it. His eyes were nearly the same color with dark bags under them indicating a lack of sleep.

Annie snapped her gaze to the floor. Not only was it rude to stare, but she was also hoping he hadn't gotten a good look at her face.

"Again, I'm very sorry about that," he apologized, handing her a few textbooks.

"Don't worry about it," she told him, standing up.

"Can I at least take you to your class to make up for it?"

Pleasantly surprised at his chivalry, she accepted and they walked side by side down the somewhat crowded hallway.

_At least some men still have good manners…_ she thought to herself as they made a little small talk. She hadn't really expected him to speak in such a formal and polite way.

"Well, this is where I stop," she said, gesturing to the door in front of them.

"I suppose I'll be seeing you around then, miss…"

"Annie," she finished.

"It was nice to meet you Annie," he said.

"You too," she flashed him a genuine smile.

_**She had a smile that could light up a room…**_

The boy blinked. The girl didn't stand out much in appearance, kind of cute; not stunning. But somehow, her smile was the most beautiful he'd ever seen.

"You have a nice smile," he muttered, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Um…thank you…" No one had ever told her that before. However, when she got home and smiled in front of the mirror, she couldn't see what the strange boy had seen in it.


End file.
